Part I: Access Building Blocks
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Taking time to properly design your database and the tables contained within it is arguably the
most important step in developing a database-oriented application. By designing your database
efficiently, you maintain control of the data — eliminating costly data-entry mistakes and limiting
your data entry to essential fields.Although this book is not geared toward teaching database theory and all its nuances, this is a
good point to briefly describe the art of database normalization. You’ll read the details of normal-
ization in Chapter 3, but in the meantime you should know that normalization is the process of
breaking data down into constituent tables. Earlier in this chapter you read about how many
Access developers add dissimilar information, such as customers, invoice data, and invoice line
items, into one large table. A large table containing dissimilar data quickly becomes unwieldy and
hard to keep updated. Because a customer’s phone number appears in every row containing that
customer’s data, multiple updates must be made when the phone number changes.Step 5: Form design
After you’ve created the data and established table relationships, it’s time to design your forms.
Forms are made up of the fields that can be entered or viewed in Edit mode. Generally speaking,
your Access screens should look a lot like the forms used in a manual system.When you’re designing forms, you need to place three types of objects onscreen:l (^) Labels and text-box data-entry fields. The fields on Access forms and reports are called
controls.
l (^) Special controls (multiple-line text boxes, option buttons, list boxes, check boxes, busi-
ness graphs, and pictures).
l (^) Graphical objects to enhance the forms (colors, lines, rectangles, and three-dimensional
effects).
Ideally, if the form is being developed from an existing printed form, the Access data-entry form
should resemble the printed form. The fields should be in the same relative place on the screen as
they are in the printed counterpart.
Labels display messages, titles, or captions. Text boxes provide an area where you can type or dis-
play text or numbers that are contained in your database. Check boxes indicate a condition and are
either unchecked or checked. Other types of controls available with Access include list boxes,
combo boxes, option buttons, toggle buttons, and option groups.
Cross-Reference
Chapter 7 covers the various types of form controls available in Access.